In celebration of our participation at the Singapore Mini Maker Faire, this week we’ll be publishing a series of blog post telling awesome Maker stories building and making stuff using Evernote.

Ever since his parents put up a ramp for he and his brother to skate on when they were just kids, Troy Malone, General Manager for Evernote in APAC has always tried to make sure he had a small half pipe wherever he lived. A half pipe was more than a place where Troy skated and had fun. It was a place that has captured the memories of many wonderful afternoons.

Now that he can skate with all three of his kids, it’s even more of a blast as he sees them learn and get better. Building a half pipe from scratch is definitely not an easy task. From doing research to the actual making, lots of time and effort is needed.

Follow Troy’s journey below to see how he uses Evernote to simplify the making process.

No-Fuss Researching

Clip Away

Researching for a project as huge as this is not an easy feat. There is information scattered everywhere on the web; articles ranging from just a paragraph to pages long, different methods with various difficulty levels and material lists with all sorts of tools he has never heard of. At times, it is tough for Troy to just look through all the web materials, let alone decide on the best method and material list. Troy uses the Evernote Web Clipper to clip online articles for a later read when time allows. Besides, with the smart search function, Troy is able to search within documents, articles and pictures to quickly pull out articles he has previously clipped when needed.

Bringing Your Shopping Lists with You

Troy uses Evernote to store the list of materials that is needed and pulls them out whenever he needs to refer to it. He is able to type the list up on his computer when he is home, and then access it from his phone when he is at the store. This allows him the flexibilty to pick up materials from wherever he is or whenever he passes by a hardware store.

Checked!

Since the materials cannot be found in a central area, Troy visits many places to source for materials, and this cannot be done in a single day. Troy creates a check-list to ensure that he never misses out any tools or accidentally purchase two of the same item. This helps Troy clear his head as he no longer needs to rack his brains to think of what he has bought or has missed.

Building of the Half Pipe

Saving Blueprints

Troy saves all his blueprints and plans on his computer and syncs them for easy access from his phone. He follows instructions from the materials he finds online to make the correct transitions. He checks off each step on his list when completed to determine his progress.

Remembering Everything

Troy also enjoys taking photos, from the beginning till the end of the project. He captures most of his pictures on his phone and then saves them into Evernote to be synced to his computer. This helps Troy ensure that the memories of building the half pipe with his children are never lost.